Music Analysis

Music Analysis

I have decided to use the pop song "Don't Kill My Vibe" by the Norwegian singer and songwriter Sigrid. This song was released on 10th February 2017 and is all about frustrations and how they can be overcome, suggesting nothing can get in the way of your happiness and the life you are living. Sigrid said “I started talking about this difficult previous session I’d been in. I could’ve described this upcoming moment (of truth) as a bad teenage novel but ok, short version: I almost killed that Mac keyboard due to angry writing.” This has lead to an amazing, catchy, up beat song being created, creating an anthem for those who need to vent their frustrations and stop letting other walk over them. The song also has smaller links to bullying, which I will be exploring in my video, this song can create an anthem for those that need to become stronger and fight back against those who are oppressing you. 

The song starts like so, "You think you're so important to me. You think you're so important to me, don't you?" this is played as the music begins in a sort of echo that can be barely heard, this creates an interesting being could be used to set the scene of the music video and allow the story to effectively begin. 

The next verse "You shut me down, you like the control. You speak to me like I'm a child, try to hold it down, I know the answer. I can't shake it off and you feel threatened by me." The start of the song creates the context of the frustration someone is feeling. I believe the song has strong links to bullying and by having this in mind the first few lyrics suggest physical bullying, this is suggested through the lyric 'you shut me down" highlighting the fact that the bully may take control of her life and physically bully to suggest that they are more dominant and powerful. The first few lyrics creates a weak tone as the key theme is oppression, however as we move in to the end of the verse you can see the small pieces of power come through with the lyric "you feel threatened by me" this suggest that the bully is only hurting the character as they are better and happy then the bully is, and so the bully hurts, manipulates and causes pain for the victim just so the bully can be seen as the better person. By using this lyric at the end of the verse it suggest the the listeners that the victim can become stronger and stop her from becoming a victim, giving the listeners hope and empathy as they want the character to succeed. 

The chorus is then spoken and that is repeated through out the song, I tried to play it nice but oh-oh-oh, ooh, ooh. Don't kill my vide, oh-oh-oh, ooh, ohh. Don't break my stride."  The chorus suggest that the victim has tried to be civil and malleable, tried to not fight back and stoop to the bullies' level and the bully took advantage of her kindness. In response to this the victim will empower herself by being above the childish antics of the bully and always remain strong by doing so, this consul also suggest that the victim is about to fight back as she is done with playing the victim and will let nothing stand between her happiness and freedom. The last lyric "Don't break my stride" could be used as in a literal sense of the theme of happiness and freedom, that nothing should effect what you do and what you say, you should just be yourself.

The post-chorus is states "You think you're so important to me, don't you? But I wanted you to know that you don't belong here. You think you're so important to me, don't you? Don't kill my vibe." These lyrics are the same that are said in the beginning, but this time they are clearer and easy to hear. The listens could take away form this that the bully believes he/she is having an effect on her life, causing her to change and become weaker and vulnerable, but in reality she is stronger then the bully she is becoming more powerful and agin won't let anything stand in the way of her life and happiness. 

Verse two then states, "You love to tear me down, you pick me apart. Then build me up like I depend on you, but I throw myself from heights that used to scare me. Guess you're surprised, I'm the puzzle you can't figure out."  This then has the weak beginning suggesting that se was picked on, bullied and weakened by others, but the power element comes in again, suggesting after she didn't hide, she didn't let what they said get to her, instead she picked herself back up and can now overcome anything that is put in her way. The last sentence could be a reference of how most people don't tell others about what is happening when it comes to bullying and so hide and deteriorate, as she didn't do that she may surprise others as she is stronger then others through that she was. 


The song then moves on to the fastest paced section of the song, the bridge. "Say I'm young, I don't care, I won't quit, no, no, no, ho. Say I'm young, I don't care, I won't quit, no, no, no, ho and oh-oh-oh-oh. You're acting like you hurt me, but I'm not even listenin'. Hey, no-ooh-ooh-ooh. You're acting like you hurt me, but I'm not even listenin'. Don't kill. Don't kill my vibe." This creates a very catchy section of the song that is probably embedded into those the listeners, the reassuring theme of this suggest that you should have no worries and you should be living your life to the fullest as well as this the theme of giving up shines through, suggesting to the listeners that even if it is hard don't give up on what you believe in. 

The chorus and post chorus repeats, the song then comes to a neat end with the single lyric "Don't kill my vibe", suggesting to the audience that this is the main theme and this should be what the listeners should take away, that you shouldn't let anyone or anything stand in the way of your happiness.

To conclude, I believe this song is great to use as it is up beat and fun, as well as promoting a strong and meaningful message across to the audience. The song also is like by my teenage target market of 13-18, I know this as many of Sigrids fans are of this age, I also completed my own research and found out some opinions about this song:

" I love it, its fun and exciting to listen to!" 
- Jess Randle, 15

" Its really sassy and makes me feel really confident because it conveys how we should be ourselves." 
- Greg Clarke, 17

"Wow, so great to listen to, really inspiring!" 
- Ava Rea, 14

As you can see this song is enjoyed by my target market and will therefore entice them to listen to and watch the video I will be creating.